Colin Glen Leisure Park in West Belfast is to receive a new carpark, despite some local opposition.
Elected representatives at the Belfast City Council Planning Committee this week approved the overflow car park, with a free draining surface and soft landscaping scheme, to serve existing approved uses on-site. It is at Colin Glen Leisure Park115 Blacks Road, Belfast, at lands to the north of the square golf training area, east of the 3G Dome, and south of 45 and 46 Garnock Hill.
The proposed car park is located off the access road and within close proximity to dwellings along Garnock Hill.
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The applicant is the Colin Glen Trust, Dunmurry. The trust stated in a letter to the council: "The proposed overflow car park is part of the existing open space operations on the site and includes landscape planting. In this context we don’t consider there to be a loss of open space.
"Notwithstanding, the removal of the overgrown vegetation was required to manage antisocial behaviour problems (of which council and PSNI are both aware) and the provision of the overflow car park is required to support the 180,000+ members of the public who use the open space and recreation facilities every year.
"The re-use and replanting of this area will therefore bring substantial community benefits that decisively outweigh the loss of the area of overgrown waste ground. It is notable that the overflow car park facilities are also used by people visiting the Council play parks on the access road where limited parking is provided, and that the Indoor Dome and Driving Range are both Council funded projects."
The council planning officer in the report stated: "In conclusion, given the evidence of need for the proposed car park, the characteristics of the land in question and that is it part of a much larger area of open space, on balance, it is considered that there are exceptional circumstances that decisively outweigh the loss of the open space."
Four objections were received from residents of Garnock Hill, the housing to the immediate north of the site. Residents aired concerns about further anti-social behaviour at the site, potential for cars to hit fence, lack of privacy, noise and lights from cars, and the management of landscaping.
Residents also raised issues about the amount of traffic, cars parked at the fence, double parking, the lack of lighting and the materials of the car park. They also raised concerns about health impacts associated with car fumes, the impact on wildlife, and raised an issue of climbing plants on the fence not belonging to Colin Glen.
The council case officer states that regarding anti-social behaviour, "there is no evidence that this would be a land-use planning matter in this case" and adds "this would be a police matter." Regarding the potential for cars to hit fence the officer said it "would be a civil matter."
The report states: "The proposed hedgerow and existing fence would aid to provide privacy from the car park. The proposed landscaping and fence would provide a buffer from car lights while noise from cars parking would not be sufficient to cause an impact on amenity.
"Fumes from cars would not be a reason to refuse planning permission and Environmental Health has no objection to the proposal. The proposed car park would be an overflow car park which would be used during busy periods. However, given the facilities close at 10pm, cars would unlikely use the car park at unsociable hours. Were permission to be granted, conditions could be imposed to restrict the times that the car park could be used."
It adds: "An objection from a neighbouring resident questions how the landscaping will be managed and that the proposed planting is on a fence not within the ownership of the applicant. Revised plans have removed the climbing plants from the fence and conditions would be attached to ensure the landscaping proposals are carried out and permanently retained.
"An objection raises the possibility of damage to existing habitats through removal of trees, while trees appear to have been removed prior to the application being submitted they are not protected under a Tree Preservation Order. The proposals show no further trees to be felled within this application."
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